How to Find Deleted Files on Windows 11

To find deleted files on Windows 11, open the Recycle Bin on your desktop, right-click the file, and select Restore. The file goes back to the folder it was deleted from. If it isn’t in the Recycle Bin, check the OneDrive recycle bin, File History, or Previous Versions, in that order.

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Four places to check for a deleted file in Windows 11: Recycle Bin, OneDrive recycle bin, File History, and Previous Versions

Check the Recycle Bin

Most files you delete from your PC’s drive go here first.

Double-click Recycle Bin on the desktop. If it isn’t there, press Windows key + S, type Recycle Bin, and open it. (See how to remove or restore the Recycle Bin on the desktop.)
Find your file. Select the Date Deleted column header to sort by the most recent deletions, or type the name into the search box.
Right-click the file and select Restore.

If the Recycle Bin icon is missing from the desktop, see how to add desktop icons in Windows 11. To restore several files at once, select them while holding Ctrl, then right-click and choose Restore. If you just deleted the file, you can also press Ctrl + Z in File Explorer right away to undo the delete.

Files skip the Recycle Bin if you deleted them with Shift + Delete, if they were too large for the bin, or if they came from a USB drive or network location.

Check the OneDrive Recycle Bin

If the file was in a OneDrive folder, such as Desktop or Documents when OneDrive backup is on, it may be in the OneDrive recycle bin instead. That is where files go when you delete files from OneDrive on Windows 11.

Go to onedrive.com in a browser and sign in.
Select Recycle bin in the left pane.
Select the file, then select Restore.

Microsoft says files in the OneDrive recycle bin for personal accounts are deleted automatically after 30 days. See Microsoft’s OneDrive restore guide.

Restore From File History

This only works if File History was turned on and backing up to a drive before the file was deleted.

Press Windows key + S, type Restore your files with File History, and open it.
Browse to the folder that held the file. Use the arrows at the bottom to move back to an older backup.
Select the file, then select the green Restore button.

Restore a Previous Version of the Folder

Open File Explorer with Windows key + E.
Right-click the folder that held the file and select Properties.
Open the Previous Versions tab.
Pick a version from before the file was deleted and select Open to look inside it.
Copy the file you need to a safe location.

If the list says there are no previous versions available, File History and restore points didn’t save copies of that folder.

Recover Files With Windows File Recovery

If the file isn’t in any recycle bin or backup, Microsoft’s free Windows File Recovery app can sometimes get it back from internal drives, external drives, and USB drives. It doesn’t work for cloud storage or network shares.

Windows File Recovery basics: install it from the Microsoft Store, recover to a different drive, start with Regular mode, and use Extensive mode for USB drives or older deletions

Stop saving new files to the drive that held the lost file. New data can overwrite it.
Install Windows File Recovery from the Microsoft Store.
Press the Windows key, type Windows File Recovery, open it, and select Yes when asked.
Type a command that names the drive to search, then a different drive to save to. For example, this looks for Word and PDF files on C: and saves them to E:

winfr C: E: /regular /n *.docx /n *.pdf

Enter Y to start. Recovered files go into a Recovery_ folder on the destination drive.

Microsoft recommends /regular for files recently deleted from an NTFS drive (most PC drives), and /extensive for older deletions, formatted or corrupted drives, and FAT or exFAT drives such as SD cards and many USB sticks.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long do files stay in the Recycle Bin?

Files stay until you empty the bin or it runs out of space. Storage Sense can also delete them on a schedule if you turned that setting on.

Can I recover a file after emptying the Recycle Bin?

Sometimes. Try File History, Previous Versions, or Windows File Recovery. The sooner you try, the better your chances. To avoid this next time, set up a backup of Windows 11 to an external hard drive.

Where did my deleted file go if it’s not in the Recycle Bin?

It may have been deleted with Shift + Delete, from a USB drive, or from OneDrive. Check the OneDrive recycle bin first if the file was in a synced folder. A file also disappears from OneDrive when it is moved out of the OneDrive folder, which is what happens when you move files from OneDrive to your PC.

If the file isn’t deleted and you just can’t find it, see how to see recent files in Windows 11.

Matthew Burleigh

Matthew Burleigh has been writing tech tutorials since 2008. His writing has appeared on dozens of different websites and been read hundreds of millions of times.

After receiving his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Computer Science he spent several years working in IT management for small businesses. However, he now works full time writing content online and creating websites.

His main writing topics include iPhones, Microsoft Office, Google Apps, Android, and Photoshop, but he has also written about many other tech topics as well.